BARBADOS’ Under-17 captain Ramar Millar, his deputy Sebastian Hunte and teammate Shakille Belle have been selected for the upcoming Digicel Kick Start Football Clinic.
The annual clinic will be held at Kensington Oval from October 29 to November 3 and the trio will showcase their skills with the hope of earning an attachment with English Premier League powerhouse Chelsea.
Following a lucrative three-year partnership between telecom-munications giants Digicel and Chelsea, the club is now responsible for providing coaching expertise for the clinic.
The three local boys will be joined by youngsters from Haiti, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada, St Lucia, Suriname, Panama and St Kitts and Nevis.
Seven footballers from the clinic will be selected by the Chelsea coaches to travel to Stanford Bridge to receive further training and a possible stint with the club’s junior squad.
Excited by the prospect of going to Chelsea, Hunte, a 15-year-old student of Harrison College, said this was a great opportunity to further his growth as a footballer.
“The experience of playing against other good regional players while being trained by coaches of this level is one that cannot be beaten. Add to that the chance to go overseas and play with the Chelsea club and this is certainly a dream of any junior footballer,” the midfielder said.
Millar, 16, of St Leonard’s Boys’ School, believed the clinic would help him and his two national teammates in their preparations as they continue to represent Barbados.
“The training and knowledge we gain from this clinic would be helpful in getting us ready for the next stage of our Under-17 World Cup bid, which we (Barbados) are still in the hunt for after qualifying for the CONCACAF Finals by winning our zone in St Kitts earlier this year,” said Millar.
Belle, 16, of The Lester Vaughan Secondary School, said the clinic and the possibility of going to Chelsea were just what he was looking for.
“It is my desire to play professional football for one of the world’s top football clubs, and to do this, I need to be dedicated, focused and exposed to the highest level of training possible.
“I would therefore like to thank Digicel for giving me this opportunity, which I will certainly look to take advantage of,” he said.
Commercial director of Digicel (Barbados) Limited, Alex Tasker, said the clinic was part of the company’s commitment to the development of football in the region as well as its focus on building the youth. (PR/EZS)

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